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Milk production on the move:

Challenges and Strategies by

European Dairy Farmers

Katrine Lecornu & Henning Helms

European Dairy Farmers e.V.

Socio-economic significance of dairy farming around the world

Dairy production on the move: more market in the EU……

……..but not the same chances and challenges for European dairy farmers.

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Collection of cow milk in Germany

(largest dairy producer in the EU)

Collection of cow milk in France

(2nd largest dairy producer in the EU)

Individual chances and challenges are as diverse as the conditions under which we produce:

climate, natural structures, legal rules, processing structures…

Economic performance varies greatly… particularly within countriesChart: BEP II in € Ct/kg ECM, 270 conventional and 23 organic EDF EU farms plus 9 EDF farms from CA and 10 from CH

THE challenge for EACH dairy farm: To adjust the production system as best as possible to given

site conditions being able to produce economically successful in the long run.

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What is key for a successful milk production?

Operational management:

Skills in herd and field management

Healthy and long-living cows

Efficient feeding

Home grown feed produced at reasonable costs

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But….is thisenough?

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What is key for a successful milk production?

Skills in herd and field management

+ strategic management:

Producing a milk yield in line with the input

intensity (capital & labour) of the farm

What about price volatility?

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Will the nightmare soon be over?

Do we need to take more care about cash flow?

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What is key for a successful milk production?

Financial management:

Skills in cash and risk management is no longer just an option!

What are the future “landmarks” for dairy producers?

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• Price volatility is part of our business… develop skills in cash & risk management

• Farm growth… skills in labour management and organisation

Limits for the future development of our dairy enterprises...

• Land availability and increasing limitations for Nitrogen and Phosphate emissions

• Labour availability: qualified workers at reasonable costs or will we have to automate in future?

Attractive for successors?

• Societal demands on food security,

environment & animal protection: Which

type of dairy farming is demanded by our

consumers?

My individual challenges

KATRINE, farming 110 dairy

cows in Normandy, France

HENNING, farming 400 dairy

cows in North-East Germany

My biggest challenge

today, next to the

low milk price is…

To make the living for a family + 1

employee from 110 cows and 100 ha

To handle ALL issues related to the farm:

I´m the farm manager (CEO) + the herd

manager (COO) + the financial manager

(CFO)…

My plans for the next

5 years are…

To fill up the barn (milk contracts needed)

without big investments and with the same

labour units as today OR find off-farm

income for myself or my husband.

To keep the farm stable like in past years

and prepare it for the next generation

The biggest

challenge or obstacle

in regard to this is…

To reorganize the labour situation and the

family life

German regulations

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What we have in common:

Exchange and learn from each other!

Somewhere, there is someone who has the same

problem and maybe already a solution! You just

need to find her or him…

Join the European Dairy Farmers!

We are open minded and innovative dairy farmers

who meet, exchange experiences and are inspired,

sharing our farm figures.

We connect open minded and passionate dairy

professionals who are curious to learn and eager to

explain, in a joyous, relaxed & tolerant atmosphere.

We believe in the trusted exchange of ideas,

experiences and knowledge on international level

with real farmers, based on real figures and real

cows.

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EDF members in 2015